Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization

📢 Join us this Monday, 6 October, for a special webinar on Non-Violence — a principle at the heart of UNPO since its founding. Together with representatives from Tibet, Assyria and West Papua, we’ll explore how non-violence shapes the pursuit of self-determination and remains vital for unrepresented peoples today. 🗓️ Monday, 6 October ⏰ 17:00 CEST | 11:00 EST 💻 Online — register through the link https://lnkd.in/ewDByPZ4

Today, on the #InternationalDayofNon‑Violence, we celebrate the principle that has guided UNPO since its founding in 1991 by Tibet, Estonia, and the Uyghurs. Non-violence is at the heart of what we do, guiding our members’ efforts, enabling reconciliation, restoration, and the rebuilding of trust. We continue to stand for non‑violence, ensuring that the pursuit of self‑determination remains peaceful, principled, and enduring.

The #Hmong people in Lao PDR continue to face decades of violence, forced displacement, and cultural erasure. At the 60th UN Human Rights Council session, UNPO, together with the Congress of World Hmong People and Geneva for Human Rights, called for urgent action to protect their rights and ensure recognition of their Indigenous identity. Despite repeated UN recommendations, the Lao government continues to deny the existence of Indigenous Peoples, leaving the Hmong, including the ChaoFa community, at ongoing risk of attack, displacement, and persecution. Read more and watch the statement here: https://lnkd.in/e37PCYf5

A new UN Joint Allegation Letter (VNM 5.2025) to Viet Nam echoes concerns raised by UNPO: #KhmerKrom activists & monks face arbitrary arrests, unfair trials & discrimination for peacefully defending their identity & rights. Read more here: https://lnkd.in/eJjfN_fw

On September 26, a joint statement from Geneva for Human Rights - Global Training & Policy Studies, Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization & Assemblea International at UNHRC 60 highlighted Spain’s ongoing violations of #Catalan self-determination and human rights. Selective prosecutions, inconsistent amnesty law application, and suppression of cultural and linguistic rights must end. Read and watch the statement here: https://lnkd.in/eds4QtZh

UN Special Rapporteurs have issued Joint Allegation Letters to the Government of Bangladesh and Lama Rubber Industries, raising serious concerns over land grabbing and rights violations against Indigenous communities in the #ChittagongHillTracts. The move follows a joint submission by UNPO and PCJSS, documenting ongoing abuses in Bandarban, including the encroachment of 3,500 acres of ancestral land, forced evictions, and the criminalisation of Indigenous leaders such as environmental defender Ringrong Mro. These practices violate the 1997 CHT Peace Accord and threaten the survival of Indigenous peoples’ culture, livelihoods, and rights. Read more here: https://lnkd.in/e7MEJTy6

Today I had the privilege of meeting with Mr. Marko Mihkelson, Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Estonian Parliament, to discuss one of the most pressing challenges of our time: the rise of misinformation campaigns orchestrated by the Russian Federation and China. For unrepresented nations and peoples, these disinformation strategies are not abstract – they strike directly at their identities, their rights, and their ability to have their voices heard. Narratives are manipulated to silence communities, to erase cultures, and to weaken democratic spaces. Estonia, with its unique history and global leadership in digital resilience and human rights, plays a crucial role in helping to build strategies that both protect freedom of expression and empower peoples to resist manipulation. Our discussion underlined the importance of international cooperation in defending the right to truth, identity, and self-determination. At Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization, we are committed to joining forces with Estonia and other partners to confront these threats and ensure that technology is used to protect rights, not suppress them. #FreedomOfExpression #SelfDetermination #HumanRights #Disinformation #Estonia #UNPO

At the UN Human Rights Council, UNPO joined the World Sindh Congress to draw attention to the civil, political, and economic exploitation of #Sindh by Pakistan’s military establishment. The Sindhi people, one of Pakistan’s largest ethnic groups, face ongoing human rights abuses including enforced disappearances, political repression, and religious persecution. Despite Sindh’s natural wealth, its resources are diverted away from local communities, who also suffer from water scarcity, environmental degradation, and devastating floods. Read more here: https://lnkd.in/etH-NKg7

Indonesia is facing growing scrutiny as the gap between its democratic image and the reality of repression becomes increasingly evident. Arbitrary arrests, excessive militarization, and restrictions on fundamental freedoms are not new, they have long shaped the daily lives of communities in #WestPapua, #Acheh, and the #SouthMoluccas. UNPO stresses that this moment must be a turning point. Dialogue, accountability, and respect for human rights are not optional: they are essential pillars of stability and trust between a state and its citizens. 👉 Read more here: https://lnkd.in/eaMSTmBG

It was a privilege to meet with the Honorable Margus Tsahkna Minister of Foreign Affairs of Estonia to explore opportunities for collaboration with our long term and close partners in the country, the Institute of the Rights of Peoples, on countering disinformation and advancing digital rights. Estonia has long been a global leader in promoting freedom of expression, media freedom, and innovative digital governance. These values are not only vital for open societies, but also essential for unrepresented nations and peoples, who face daily challenges of censorship, disinformation campaigns, and shrinking civic space. At Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization, we believe that digital tools — when rooted in rights and transparency — can empower communities, preserve cultures, and strengthen democratic pluralism worldwide. Estonia’s leadership in this field is a source of inspiration and a natural partner in building resilient strategies to protect voices too often silenced. I look forward to continuing the conversation and taking concrete steps together in the months ahead. Thank you very much to the Minister and his team for their time, as well as Maaja Mäll and Sven Grünberg for the incredible support. #UNPO #Estonia #DigitalDemocracy #CounterDisinformation #HumanRights #CivicSpace #SelfDetermination #InformationIntegrity